The Department of Geography at the Ibn Rushd College of Education for Humanities, University of Baghdad, held the defense of the doctoral dissertation entitled “Soil Water Balance and Its Impact on the Cultivation and Production of Selected Summer Crops in Samarra District”, presented by Huda Mudhhar Abdul Karim, a Ph.D. candidate specializing in Physical Geography.
The examination committee was chaired by Prof. Dr. Jwan Samin Ahmed, with Asst. Prof. Dr. Abdulsalam Mohammed Mayel serving as both supervisor and committee member. The committee also included a distinguished panel of faculty members from the Department of Geography, in addition to Prof. Dr. Sabah Hammoud Ghaffar from the College of Education, University of Samarra, who participated as an external examiner.
The dissertation aimed to analyze the soil water balance in Samarra District by identifying periods of water surplus and deficit and assessing their impact on agricultural production. The study emphasized the importance of utilizing surplus water periods efficiently while mitigating the adverse effects of water shortages and soil moisture deficits on summer crop cultivation.
The findings revealed that an optimal balance is achieved when crop water consumption corresponds to the available soil water balance. Water deficits were found to occur during the summer season due to increased evapotranspiration, high temperatures, and limited rainfall, whereas winter conditions generally supported a favorable water balance. The study concluded that soil water balance analysis provides an effective framework for sustainable water resource management and contributes to determining crop water requirements, thereby supporting both water and food security.
